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The Department of Physics and Astronomy is a part of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.
| Spacecraft | Launch Date (UT) |
| Explorer 1 | 1958 Feb. 1 |
| Explorer 2 (launch failure) | 1958 Mar. 5 |
| Explorer 3 | 1958 Mar. 26 |
| Explorer 4 | 1958 July 26 |
| Explorer 5 (launch failure) | 1958 Aug. 24 |
| Pioneer 1 | 1958 Oct. 11 |
| Pioneer 2 | 1958 Nov. 8 |
| Pioneer 3 | 1958 Dec. 6 |
| Pioneer 4 | 1959 Mar. 3 |
| Explorer 7 (launch failure) | 1959 Jul. 16 |
| Explorer 7 | 1959 Oct. 13 |
| S-46 (launch failure) | 1960 Mar. 23 |
| Injun 1 | 1961 June 29 |
| Explorer 12 | 1961 Aug. 16 |
| Ranger (failed to reach orbit) | 1961 Aug. 23 |
| TRAAC | 1961 Nov. 15 |
| Ranger 2 (failed to reach orbit) | 1961 Nov. 18 |
| Injun 2 (launch failure) | 1962 Jan. 24 |
| Discoverer 38 | 1962 Feb. 27 |
| Mariner 1 (launch failure) | 1962 Jul. 22 |
| Mariner 2 | 1962 Aug. 27 |
| Explorer 14 | 1962 Oct. 2 |
| Explorer 15 | 1962 Oct. 27 |
| Injun 3 | 1962 Dec. 12 |
| Relay 1 | 1962 Dec. 13 |
| P-11 | 1964 Aug. 14 |
| OGO 1 | 1964 Sept. 5 |
| Mariner 3 (shroud failure) | 1964 Nov. 5 |
| Injun 4 | 1964 Nov. 21 |
| Mariner 4 | 1964 Nov. 28 |
| OGO 2 | 1965 Oct. 14 |
| OGO 3 | 1966 June 7 |
| Explorer 33 (IMP-D) | 1966 July 1 |
| Explorer 34 (IMP-4) | 1967 May 24 |
| Mariner 5 | 1967 June 14 |
| Explorer 35 (IMP-E) | 1967 July 19 |
| OGO 4 | 1967 July 28 |
| OGO 5 | 1968 Mar. 4 |
| Injun 5 | 1968 Aug. 8 |
| Explorer 41 (IMP-5) | 1969 June 21 |
| Explorer 43 (IMP- 6) | 1971 Mar. 13 |
| Explorer 45 (SSS) | 1971 Nov. 16 |
| UK 4 (Ariel-4) | 1971 Dec. 11 |
| Pioneer 10 | 1972 Mar. 2 |
| Explorer 47 (IMP-7) | 1972 Sept. 23 |
| Pioneer 11 | 1973 Apr. 6 |
| Explorer 50 (IMP-8) | 1973 Oct. 26 |
| Hawkeye 1 | 1974 June 3 |
| Helios 1 | 1974 Dec. 10 |
| Helios 2 | 1976 Jan. 15 |
| Voyager 2 * | 1977 Aug. 20 |
| Voyager 1 * | 1977 Sept. 5 |
| International Sun-Earth Explorer 1 | 1977 Oct. 22 |
| International Sun-Earth Explorer 2 | 1977 Oct. 22 |
| International Sun-Earth Explorer 3 | 1978 Aug. 12 |
| Firewheel (launch failure) | 1980 May 25 |
| Dynamic Explorer 1 | 1981 Aug. 3 |
| Plasma Diagnostics Package (shuttle Columbia) | 1982 Mar. 22 |
| AMPTE / IRM | 1984 Aug. 16 |
| Plasma Diagnostics Package (shuttle Challenger) | 1985 Jul. 29 |
| Galileo (terminated by plunging spacecraft into Jupiter, 9/2003) | 1989 Oct. 18 |
| CRRES | 1990 July 25 |
| Geotail | 1992 July 24 |
| Wind * | 1994 Nov. 1 |
| Polar | 1996 Feb. 24 |
| Cluster I (4 spacecraft) (launch failure) | 1996 June 4 |
| Cassini (terminated by plunging spacecraft into Saturn, 9/2018) | 1997 Oct. 15 |
| Cluster Salsa (FM6) | 2000 July 16 |
| Cluster Samba (FM7) | 2000 July 16 |
| Cluster Tango (FM8) | 2000 Aug. 9 |
| Cluster Rumba (FM5) | 2000 Aug. 9 |
| Mars Express * | 2003 June 2 |
| Juno * | 2011 Aug. 5 |
| Van Allen Probe A (1 of 2 spacecraft) | 2012 Aug. 30 |
| Van Allen Probe B (1 of 2 spacecraft) | 2012 Aug.30 |
| Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission 1 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2015 Mar.12 |
| Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission 2 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2015 Mar.12 |
| Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission 3 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2015 Mar.12 |
| Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission 4 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2015 Mar.12 |
| HERCI CubeSat/Fox-1D | 2018 Jan. 12 |
| HaloSat Cube Satellite | 2018 May 21 |
| TRACERS SV1 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2025 July 23 |
| TRACERS SV2 (1 of 4 spacecraft) * | 2025 July 23 |
| *Spacecraft carrying currently operating Iowa instruments | |
| Rockets | Launch Date |
| Rockoons (109 launches) payloads and casings | 1951-1957 |
| Javelin 8:45 experiment | 1967 Sept. 21 |
| Javelin 8:46 experiment | 1968 May 25 |
| Spear 1 pressure gauge | 1987 Dec. 13 |
| Spear 3 pressure gauge | 1993 Mar. 15 |
| Rocket Auroral Correlator Experiment (RACE) | 2002 Feb. 6 |
| High Bandwidth Auroral Rocket (HiBAR) | 2003 Jan. 28 |
| Correlations of High Frequencies & Auroral Roar Mission (CHARM) | 2007 Feb. 28 |
| Twin Rockets to Investigate Cusp Electrodynamics (TRICE) Mission 1/A | 2007 Dec. 10 |
| Twin Rockets to Investigate Cusp Electrodynamics (TRICE) Mission 1/B | 2007 Dec. 10 |
| Auroral Current and Electrodynamic Structure (ACES) 1/A | 2009 Jan. 29 |
| Auroral Current and Electrodynamic Structure (ACES) 1/B | 2009 Jan. 29 |
| Black Brant IX Sounding Rocket/CyXESS Mission | 2009 Nov. 13 |
| Correlations of High Frequencies & Auroral Roar Mission (CHARM 2) | 2010 Feb. 17 |
| Off-Plane Grating Rocket for Extended Source Spectroscopy 1 (OGRESS 1) | 2015 May 2 |
| Twin Rockets to Investigate Cusp Electrodynamics 2 (TRICE-2) Mission 2/A | 2018 Dec. 8 |
| Twin Rockets to Investigate Cusp Electrodynamics 2 (TRICE-2) Mission 2/B | 2018 Dec. 8 |
| Cusp Alfven and Plasma Electrodynamics Rocket 2 (CAPER 2) | 2019 Jan. 4 |
| Investigation of Cusp Irregularities-5 (ICI-5) | 2019 Nov. 26 |
| VLF Trans-Ionospheric Propagation Exp. Rocket (VIPER) Search Coils | 2021 May 26 |
| Loss through Auroral Microburst Pulsations (LAMP) instrument | 2022 Mar. 5 |
| Auroral Current & Electrodynamic Structure (ACES) Rocket 2/A | 2022 Nov. 20 |
| Auroral Current & Electrodynamic Structure (ACES) Rocket 2/B | 2022 Nov. 20 |
| COUSIN - Study of small-scale auroral region energy deposition | 2025 |
| Observing Cusp High-Altitude Reconnection & Electrodynamics (OCHRE) | 2025-2026 |
| Investigation of Cusp Irregularities-5bis (ICI-5bis) - Pathfinder | TBD |
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